My eyes fought to adjust to the darkness shrouding my room, but I couldn't focus on anything but the back-breaking pain in my lower abdomen. Feeling like a pile of rocks was sitting on me. As I reached over to the lamp on my bedside, the puddle of moisture snatched my attention and suddenly my heart was pounding in my ears. I reeled my hand back in and shifted as best I could, and I held on to my babies.

"Brian!" I cried "Brian." The worst dread filled me with the reality of being alone during this-whatever it was. But then the lock clicked and my door creaked open slowly as if he wasn't sure if he was hearing right. "I need a doctor."

"Ma'am-" he entered slower than I would have preferred "Ms. Pope?"

"Brian I'm in here, I can't move. It hurts." I say, not exactly sure I even know what I'm saying. It's a pain that I can't pinpoint in small agonizing waves. "Get the light," I say and when the light fills the room I finally see the crimson substance coating my hand.

"I need an ambulance at 197 draker st. It's an emergency. Golden rose is on the move." Brian says into his earpiece. I couldn't hear what was said back to him but he muttered Falcon and I know that's the President's codename. "Ms. Pope, do you need anything?" He asks

"There's a bag in my closet." My voice strains with the pain.

XXXXXXX

Paramedics are throwing questions at me left and right, the sirens are whirling loud and I can't conceive a thought. Brian's been listening to his earpiece the entire ride for feedback which just worried me more. The female medic takes the pressure wrap off my arm and that's when everything starts spinning.

"Ms. Pope, can you hear me? I need you to try and stay awake. Can you do that for me?" I think I nod my head but my whole body feels heavy. "How far along are you?"

"Thirty-five weeks" I get out. Turning to Brian, I say "He needs to be here." I'm unsure what happened next, I just remember feeling sick and it being extremely hard to hold my eyes open.

"I'm administering an IV and turning on the flashers, she just lost consciousness." The medic says.

XXXXXXX

Fitz POV

It won't be light for another four hours. Abby looks at me worried which doesn't surprise me but she should be worried. Depending on how well she does on this assignment her job and future career in Washington are on the line. So she better not screw this up. A hurd of agents approach us as we exit the motorcade. I don't have time to babysit while she briefs them.

"Doctor Bishop" I shake his hand and he tells me what an honor it is. I smile tightly and we continue into the hospital. Olivia's on the third floor. And for the sake of anonymity, the floors have been shut down and the patients have been moved to neighboring floors.

"She was brought in thirty minutes ago, paramedics say she lost consciousness in the ambulance. Since she's been here, we've been monitoring the babies, they look to be okay, but Ms. Pope won't be leaving today. Myself and the nurses are confident she's ready to deliver, but that isn't without complications." He stops, his hand hovering over the door handle. Dr. Bishop is bracing himself for some reason. "She lost a substantial amount of blood, and because of the uniqueness of this pregnancy, the only safe entry into the world for the twins will be through a cesarean. We're most confident of that."

"She's not due for another month, what will that mean for my children?" I ask.

"We won't know until we get them out. And we can't do that until Ms. Pope's blood transfusion is complete." The doctor explains.

"She's A negative, get her whatever she needs. And in about ten minutes my subordinate will have you sign something." I hand him his chart back and I walk into the room. The lights are dim, she's sleeping and there's an iv in her arm and wires and monitors hooked up to her stomach. I stop myself from punching a president-sized hole in the wall and instead I sit beside her. Taking her hand in mine, shocked by her dropped temperature.

"When did you get here?" her low, raspy voice cut through the silence. I was standing in seconds, stroking the crown of her head.

"A few minutes ago. How do you feel?" I ask

Her eyes fall close as she tries to scoot up the bed "Weak, pressure, hungry." I can tell she's weak because after her first attempt to move she doesn't try again.

"You lost a lot of blood, they're getting you prepped for a blood transfusion and then surgery. It's the only way to get them out safely. Apparently one of the babies poked a hole in their amniotic sac." The fear in her eyes simmers but uncertainty lingers.

"I need water."

"They're giving you fluids through the iv, it's not safe to eat or drink anything before surgery."

Olivia opens her mouth, probably to protest what I and the professionals have determined. But whatever she was going to say, was replaced with a horrifying scream. The grip she had on my hand tightened, more painful than my manhood will ever allow me to admit.

"Olivia, what is it?" Her forehead broke out in beads of sweat, her other hand snapped onto the railing, and she strained, throwing her head back against the pillows. "Olivia?" seconds after that she gained her voice and looked at me with an equally horrified expression.

"Something big just slipped outta me. Fitz-" her panicked tone did nothing but send me into panic mode but when she started sobbing I felt everything around me stop.

If this was four weeks down the line, I probably wouldn't have been so afraid to lift that sheet. But the tug I had in my chest was brutal. As I lifted the sheet, I was met with a puddle of blood, and a baby curled in a ball, not moving or crying. I didn't give it another thought before I ran to the door, hollering for nurses and doctors. About five rushed in my direction and as I turned back to Olivia, that pained expression returned and she was pushing again.

"Mr. President, what happened?" A nurse asked, but I couldn't exactly say. One coded something over the intercom and two more came in with a cart of instruments. I was at Olivia's side instantly holding her hand as she pushed the second baby out, but my gaze wandered to baby A who still wasn't crying. After baby B was out the nurses rushed her to the other side of the room and the other two nurses rushed Olivia out of the room.

I don't know how long I was stuck but when I came back to myself the white tile at the edge of Olivia's bed was red, and my shirt and pants were as well. But something beautiful rang in my ears-crying, loud I'm here and I want it to be known- crying filled my ears. Dr. Bishop walked over to me and told me I was in shock. But it didn't register to me.

Sound fully came back to my ears, the room was filled with nurses and bright lights and machines.

"Olivia?" I say.

"She's alright. She's getting a blood transfusion." Dr. Bishop says.

"My daughters?" I stand up this time, and I look over to where the crying is coming from, I can hear it clearly now despite the army of nurses hovering over them.

"They're alive-" As he says this one by one the nurses peel out of the room each pushing a glass crib with the girls.

"Where are they taking them?" I step forward and the doctor puts his hand on my chest and when I lower my head and pull my shoulders back he moves that hand.

"They're going to the NICU. It's protocol when babies are premature. We're trying to get all the facts. Mr. President, it's been about three minutes since we arrived, I think you may be still suffering from shock. I could administer a sedative."

"No. When will I be able to see Olivia or my babies?"

"Could be an hour or four hours. We are stumped at the nature of Ms. Pope's delivery, so we're uncertain at this moment how much she hemorrhaged at home and here." The doctor moved past me, hovering his hand over the handle "As soon as we know something, you will know Mr. President. They're good hands, sir."

For the first time, I take notice of the erratic thudding against my rib cage and I take a seat. My hands are sticky from the dried blood and my clothes look like I'm the sicko in a slasher film. The door squeaks open and Abby's poker face is non-existent, her eyes haven't left the blood pool, and I can hear her teeth chattering with fear.

"Sir? Is she…is the baby-"

"I need a clean shirt and a phone. Go now, Abby." I say, and she doesn't move, she's glued to that spot. I walk over to her and I shake her shoulders. "Get someone to bring me a phone and clothes, and then go home, Abigail. That's an order."

Finally, she inhales a shaky breath and regains her composure or whatever game-face gladiator shit Olivia taught her. "Yes, sir."

"Go."

I heard the click on his boots before I saw him because there was nothing to hide the noise. The few nurses that were on this floor were either attending to the twins or Olivia. The clock says it's been an hour, and I still haven't heard from the damn doctor. But I was both relieved and concerned to see Huck coming down the corridor. I knew her team wouldn't stay away for long, and I wasn't going to deny them access to this floor. But the envelope is what unnerved me. After what happened, nothing would surprise me right now.

"Abby called, where is she? Who's watching her room?"

"Secret service. She lost a lot of blood, but the girls are here." I say.

I see the relief flood him and he's remembered what else he came here for. He waits for me to open the fold before explaining himself. "It's everything you need to get rid of the First Lady and-"

"She's still the mother of my children, I can't get rid of her," I say. "This is a b-613 file. How did you-?"

"Command is resourceful, he has something on every major player in Washington. You just have to know where to look." Huck says. " What about Liv, when can I see her?"

I was about to relay that I'm in the same predicament when I noticed the doctor walking over to us.

"Ms. Pope is asking for you, Mr. President, she's weakened from the medication but she's doing better. And your daughters are going to be okay. I can explain better, later. Would you like to see them?.."

Olivia's pov

Nothing felt real, the lights in my room were dimmed low because my eyes couldn't deal with the harshness. My body felt like an elephant sat on me for hours and my head was pounding but in the fog of that, all I could think about were my babies. The doctor was vague but as I started thinking back I remembered the nurse holding one and she was so bloody I couldn't look and then I was distracted by the other one pushing her way out of me. Tears ran down my face and into the crease of my neck.

"Livvie" my eyes snapped forward and I tried to hide the evidence of my tears but I couldn't move my arm that fast. Fitz slinked into the room, coming up to my bedside, almost cautious. "How are you feeling?"

"I-" I started shaking my head because I felt this terrible dread filling me and him. And he's about to tell me something I don't think I'm ready to hear. Before I realize it he's rubbing my leg, shushing me.

"They're okay, they're okay, Livvie," He says as tears fill his eyes. And I feel my heart somewhat return to its normal rhythm.

"When can I see them? I need to see them." I say. And he smiles, probably because I look crazy trying to get out of bed when I can't even feel my legs.

"Wait wait, liv I just want to make sure you're alright" He lowers the rail and sits on the edge, cupping my face in his palm. Our heads meet gently and he breathes in deeply holding it before letting it fizzle out of him. "It's not even 6 am and so much has happened, if-" he pauses and I put my hand over his melting in his touch. "I can't live without you, Livvie, so don't scare me like that. You are not allowed to die."

"Okay," I whisper, pulling him down to lay against my chest. "We're in this together."

"Through whatever."

He's been so quiet I thought he had fallen asleep, but when the nurse came in with a wheelchair he raised up quickly. It was time to see the girls for the first time and my nerves were on fire. I didn't think I would be this nervous to actually meet them for the first time. But with the insanity that was their birth, meeting them would be the easy part.

"Ready?" Fitz asked, I nodded and he lifted me slowly from the bed and sat me in the chair and the nurse pushed my iv pole as we left the room.

My gown was stained with tears long before we reached the NICU where my babies were. I thought my nerves had calmed but the moment the nurse opened the incubator and lifted the first baby out I felt my heart skip a beat. The five pounds that lay in my arms, sleeping peacefully felt like the weight of the world and they already meant so much to me.

I looked up to see Fitz blinking back tears, he couldn't keep his eyes off her. Smiling at me and then back at our baby, he whispered "Morgan"

"That's perfect, Madison and Morgan," I say.

It wouldn't be in scandal fashion to have a nice normal birth, and I love a bit of chaos. As always let me know what you all think about this chapter. And I know we would all like this story to be their reality and for it to stretch on, I will be wrapping it up soon. But for now, there's still some story to be told.

Enjoy. Leave a review.